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Thursday, November 1, 2012

Tuesday's Trees- Chinaberry

If you have Chinaberry, Melia azedarach trees in your area, this is the time of year where you KNOW they are in your area. The yellow berries hanging in clusters at the ends of the stems really stand out. I saw these trees in Virginia and wasn't sure what they were. (this was well before my quest for tree knowledge) The first fall we lived here I noticed a tree along a two-lane numbered road (not really a highway, more of a rural road) that had a few yellow berries. I made note of the area so on the return trip I looked more closely at that tree. Sure enough!! It was a Chinaberry. Since then I have seen others closer to home.

This tree is not native to the United States nor North America. It is a native to Asia, from India to China. It is a member of the Mahogany family and goes by many names- Bead tree (see those berries?), Umbrella tree, and Persian lilac. It is a lovely shaped tree, rounded oval crown, similar to an umbrella (see name above) and doesn't get too tall, only about 40 feet at maturity.

The bark is brown-gray on young trees and has pale gray ridges with orange furrows on the mature tree. The two trees (above and below) are along the same street. Both have been cut back rather severely. The trees are twisted and not really nicely formed. They do show the mature bark. I was driving -- slowly-- when I took these pictures, so they are a little blurry.

The leaves are bipinnate, 7- 10 inches long. The individual leaflets are small, about 2 inches, and sharply toothed. ALL PARTS of the tree are poisonous. It is not only harmful to humans but wildlife as well. According to Floridata website, birds eating too many of these berries can render them paralyzed.

Other sites offer medicinal uses for parts of this tree, one against the herpes simplex virus according to IFAS. Some states have this tree on the invasive list, Texas for one, and Florida does not. It is termed a weedy tree.

Spring flowers are a delicate purple appearing in May - June. The flowers are said to be fragrant. I will have to check that out next spring. The star shaped flowers are lovely.

All those little blooms are future yellow berries.

I was happy to find an uncut specimen along our travels in the Upstate. You can see the form of the tree is indeed an umbrella/ oval crown. Again, a drive-by photo, I wasn't driving this time but the speed limit was 50 MPH and there was someone coming up behind us. Charlie loves these 'slow down so I can take a picture' times.

Hello Janet,We had Chinaberry trees when I was a child. It is the lovely blooms I remember best.I did not know they were poisonous to animals as well as humans. I guess our chickens knew instinctively not to eat them.

My Night Blooming Cactus bloomed last week - I posted photo on Wednesday this week.The cactus is safely inside the house now as our weather has turned colder.

Hi Janet, This is an interesting tree. I like the umbrella shape of it. With all those yellow berries I can see how it might have become a problem in some states. I was wondering about the birds eating it- do they become paralyzed temporarily or is this a permanent, heart stopping type of paralysis?

I have always wondered what this tree would look like, as it is often mentioned in literature. Thanks for satisfying my curiosity. I'm quite sure we have none around here, or else I just haven't come across one in its memorable fruiting stage.

I don't know if I've ever seen a chinaberry tree although I regularly get the Chinaberry catalog. :) I think your series on trees is excellent. People will search for tree IDs, and will find your excellent information. The photos following the trees throughout the seasons is so helpful too. Thanks Queen!~~Dee

What a neat shape this tree has. Definitely something you could spot easily. Too bad it is so weedy. Thanks for the photos following this tree throughout the season. Really helpful to see both flowers and berries as well as overall shape for id.

I do see these growing around here. Being non-native and potentially invasive I wouldn't plant it but it does have an interesting shape. I wonder if birds have an internal button telling them not to eat too many of the berries. I like this series you are doing. I am learning a lot more about trees which is not my area of expertise.

Karin, Yes, it is all over our area. I am not sure about the birds' habits on eating these berries. Trees have not been my expertise either...so one tree at a time I started learning. I still have a lot of trouble knowing many of them.

Thanks for introducing me to yet another tree I wasn't familiar with, Janet. The flowers in the spring are so pretty, but what I really like are the huge trunks of the older trees--twisted or not, they're pretty impressive. I hope the birds know not to eat these berries, though!

Tammy, that is how I felt when I first heard what these trees were! I am glad she has power too, hoping the snow storm doesn't knock out power to those who finally got it back. What a terrible time those folks are having.

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